Not Applicable.
Not Applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a collapsible, lightweight, portable electronic equipment enclosure or container, specifically to an enclosure for table-top or in-lap use capable of providing ease of access to the equipment, equipment protection, display visibility and privacy while the equipment is in use, security when the user is away from the equipment, and equipment portability and protection when transporting the equipment.
2. Description of Related Art
Portable electronic equipment, especially the portable computer, is widely used in many environments in addition to the home or office. Using such equipment in public places indoors and outdoors and on transportation vehicles such as airplanes, trains, buses, vans, presents a number of issues. These issues involve convenience of equipment transport; privacy of the information displayed on the portable equipment; equipment security if left unattended; equipment protection from hazards such as direct sunlight, wind-blown debris, air-born dust, and moisture; and visibility of the equipment display in sunlight or in very brightly lit indoor areas. Using portable electronic equipment in industrial environments can also present equipment protection issues. In industrial environments portable electronic equipment may be used to supplement or back-up installed monitoring and test equipment, or for special calculations, measurements, or tests of equipment and process variables, or for control of process variables.
Currently available cases or covers for portable electronic equipment primarily provide protection during transport of the equipment and storage for accessories or office supplies. Once the equipment is in use the sensitive portions of the equipment are open to the environment and subject to dust, dirt, and moisture intrusion; observation by the casual passer-by; and poor visibility of the display in sunlight or brightly lit indoor areas. U.S. Pat. No. 6,149,001 (Akins) shows such a case. Attempts to address these issues have resulted in carrying cases that address only one or two of these issues. An example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,325,970 (Dillon) that addresses visibility of the display in bright light. Another example is U.S. Pat. No. 5,400,903 (Cooley), which primarily addresses equipment protection and privacy, although it additionally addresses the use of glare reducing coatings to assist in display visibility in sunlight, a less effective solution than simply providing shade for the display. These cases have the undesirable property of requiring the user to carry the substantial additional weight of the case when transporting the equipment. These cases also present their own storage problem when it is desired to use the electronic equipment without the case, such as when the user is home or in the office. Since the case is rigid and of substantial size, it presents a storage problem, taking up valuable space. These cases also are limited to use with a laptop computer or similarly configured electronic equipment. They could not easily be used with other electronic equipment, such as portable industrial measurement and test equipment, or a portable television.
Collapsible hoods have been proposed to address the issues of visibility of the portable electronic equipment display in sunlight or brightly lit areas and privacy in pubic areas. U.S. Pat. No. 5,988,823 (Wong) describes such a hood. Such hoods do not provide total enclosure of the equipment and thus provide little equipment environmental hazard protection or security when the equipment is unattended.
Thus there is a need for a portable electronic equipment enclosure that can be carried in multiple ways making transport easier, is easily stored, yet provides privacy of the information on the equipment display, gives security to the equipment when unattended, protection to the equipment from environment hazards, provides clear visibility of the display even in bright sunlight, and is light in weight.
This invention is a collapsible lightweight electronic equipment enclosure for tabletop or in-lap use providing ease of equipment access, equipment protection, display visibility, and privacy while the equipment is in use, security, and portability and equipment protection when transporting the equipment. It has application both to consumers using portable computing and entertainment equipment and to industrial users of electronic testing and inspection equipment; particularly equipment that is portable computer based, or is of similar size and weight.
The collapsible equipment enclosure has a tension frame with flexible struts. The struts are resiliently bent into a conic shape arc and positioned to cross each other at the apex of their respective arcs with the ends of the struts positioned in the down direction. A flexible sheeting bottom portion forms a rectangular periphery with four corners, an inside surface, and an outside surface; and an opaque flexible sheeting upper portion, with an opening, is joined to and contiguous to the bottom portion at the bottom periphery. The sheeting upper portion forms a conic dome shape with a substantially rectangular shape forming a front, back, left, and right sides at the attachment to the bottom.
The tension frame provides a tension force against the sheeting inner surface that maintains the sheeting substantially in the conic dome shape. The frame struts may be moved relative to each other by a force applied external to the enclosure. This permits folding the sheeting upper portion sides and bottom portion to a substantially flat position for storage without manipulation of the frame struts internal to the enclosure, while the frame struts continue to maintain tension on the sheeting. When the force applied external to the enclosure is removed, the enclosure unfolds substantially to the original shape by the tension force of the struts, and is ready for use. The opening in the sheeting upper portion allows entry and positioning of the tension frame and the equipment.
Several objects and advantages of this invention are that it solves a multiplicity of problems with using electronic equipment in natural or harsh environments, or in a transportation vehicle.
Specifically, one object of the invention is to provide enhanced visibility of electronic equipment displays when used in locations that are in sunlight or have bright artificial light. A computer display can be difficult to see in a brightly lit environment as the bright light overwhelms the luminescence of the display. The pop-up equipment enclosure overcomes this problem by providing a dark, shaded location for the equipment where the luminescence of the display may be viewed against the dark interior of the enclosure
A second object of the invention is to protect electronic equipment from weather or hazards of a harsh environment. The pop-up equipment enclosure solves this problem by surrounding the equipment with sheeting as desired. The sheeting is chosen with properties to prevent the anticipated environmental hazard from penetrating into the enclosure. The equipment is thus in a hazard-free environment.
A third object of the invention is to provide portability of the enclosure with the equipment inside. The pop-up equipment enclosure is lightweight due to its construction. This enhances portability. The enclosure further enhances portability by providing, as desired, a carry handle, straps to enable carrying as a backpack, and equipment support within the enclosure. The enclosure is designed to fit snugly around and transport an electronic device while in the collapsed position. However, the resilience of the bent struts maintains tension against the sheeting of the enclosure, give the enclosure structural stability. A portable electronic device may be transported inside the open-position enclosure while being carried by the handle, similar to carrying a birdcage.
A fourth object of the invention is to take minimal storage space when not in use. The pop-up equipment enclosure provides this by its ability to collapse almost flat. Storage of the collapsed enclosure takes minimal space. Straps with fasteners of velcro patches or mechanical fasteners secure the bottom of the unit in the folded position, and velcro patches secure the sides of the unit in the folded position, thus preventing the collapsed enclosure from opening when stored flat and empty, or when collapsed around an enclosed electronic device.
A fifth object of the invention is to restrict access to the electronic equipment display by a casual observer. The pop-up equipment enclosure provides this by being constructed of opaque sheeting with a viewing window that can be shielded by the user""s body to preclude casual observers from observing the display. In addition, the glare guard inside the unit further restricts unwanted viewing by blocking the lower part of the equipment display from all but the user""s eyes.